Macedonian-Americans, please educate your Representative in Congress regarding Resolution 521

BACKGROUND

On October 27, 2005, the U.S. Congressional Caucus on Hellenic Issues co-chaired by Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY) and Congressman Mike Bilirakis (R-FL) introduced a resolution calling upon Macedonia to “cease its distribution of negative and nationalist propaganda and…work with the United Nations and Greece to find a mutually acceptable official name for the [FYROM].”  H. RES 521 was referred to the U.S. House Committee on International Relations the same day.  The text of the resolution can be read by clicking HERE.

As of July 25, 2006, 77 congressional representatives have co-sponsored this resolution.   

FACT SHEET

1. The legislation is an illegal attempt to further judicially precluded state sponsored racial, religious, and national origin discrimination by the Greek government against minorities of Macedonian national origin.

2. House Resolution 521 is inconsistent with the judgment rulings and findings of the Strasbourg based European Court of Human Rights, noting Greek government state sponsored civil and human rights abuses against Greek citizens who are members of the Macedonian ethnic minority.

3. The purpose and intent of the legislation is built on a facially non-neutral national origin/race based discriminatory animus.

4. The legislation, by illegally and immorally substituting the derogatory term “F.Y.R.O.M.” attempts to interdict and undermine the United States’ decision to recognize Macedonia under her constitutional name, the Republic of Macedonia.

5. The official country name of Macedonia, as recognized by President Bush and by mutual agreement between the two countries, is the Republic of Macedonia, and not (F.Y.R.O.M.)

6. The legislation is both immoral and illegal because it uses the derogatory term “F.Y.R.O.M” to describe people of Macedonian national origin and people of The Republic of Macedonia.  The term F.Y.R.O.M. is akin to the derogatory and discriminatory terms WAP, CHINK, RED NECK, and NEGRO, which are used as disparaging race/national origin based descriptions.

7. The legislation runs afoul of the 1st Amendment which states “Congress shall make no law…abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press;” specifically, the legislation is an illegal attempt of governmental regulation aimed directly at chilling the content of protected speech in “textbooks, maps, and teaching aids.”  Under the 1st Amendment the government can not take steps “to halt the proliferation of” free and protected speech.

8. Under the 1st Amendment a government can not infringe on free speech by precluding “the publishing of negative and nationalist propaganda, including in school textbooks;” moreover, the legislation is an illegal attempt to regulate the time, place, and manner of protected speech.

9. Finally, the legislation does not define what is “negative and nationalist propaganda,” what is the halting of “the proliferation of negative propaganda,” and what constitutes “allowed…publishing” versus what constitutes not allowed publishing.  Thus, the legislation is unconstitutional under both the 1st Amendment Overbreadth doctrine and under the 1st Amendment Vagueness doctrine.

The United Macedonian Diaspora encourages Macedonian-Americans to educate every member of the U.S. House Committee on International Relations and their own Representative in the U.S. House of Representatives about the inaccuracies of H.RES. 521.

Below are the phone and fax numbers of all the members of the U.S. House Committee on International Relations, which will be voting on H. RES. 521.

Majority Members (Republicans) 

Congressman Henry J. Hyde (R-IL) [Chairman]
Phone: (202) 225-4561 / Fax: (202) 225-1166

Congressman James A. Leach (R-IA)
Phone:  (202)225-6576 / Fax: (202) 226-1278

Congressman Christopher H. Smith (R-NJ)
Phone: (202) 225-3765 / Fax: (202) 225-7768

Congressman Dan Burton (R-IN)
Phone: (202) 225-2276 / Fax: (202) 225-0016

Congressman Elton Gallegly (R-CA)
Phone: (202) 225-5811 / Fax: (202) 225-1100

Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL)
Phone: (202) 225-3931 / Fax: (202) 225-5620

Congressman Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA)
Phone: (202) 225-2415 / Fax: (202)225-0145
 
Congressman Edward R. Royce (R-CA)
Phone: (202) 225-4111 / Fax: (202) 226-0335
 
Congressman Peter T. King (R-NY)
Phone: (202) 225-7896 / Fax: (202) 226-2279

Congressman Steve Chabot (R-OH)
Phone: (202) 225-2216 / Fax: (202) 225-3012

Congressman Tom Tancredo (R-CO)
Phone: (202) 225-7882 / Fax: (202) 226-4623
 
Congressman Ron Paul (R-TX)
Phone: (202) 225-2831 / Fax: (202) 226-6553

Congressman Darrell Issa (R-CA)
Phone: (202) 225-3906 / Fax: (202) 225-3303

Congressman Jeff Flake (R-AZ)
Phone: (202) 225-2635 / Fax: (202) 226-4386

Congresswoman Jo Ann S. Davis (R-VA)
Phone: (202) 225-4261 / Fax: (202) 225-4382
 
Congressman Mark Green (R-WI)
Phone: (202) 225-5665 / Fax: (202) 225-5729

Congressman Gerald C. (Jerry) Weller (R-IL)
Phone: (202) 225-3635 / Fax: (202) 225-3521

Congressman Mike Pence (R-IN)
Phone: (202) 225-3021 / Fax: (202) 225-3382

Congressman Thaddeus McCotter (R-MI)
Phone: (202) 225-8171 / Fax: (202) 225-2667

Congresswoman Katherine Harris (R-FL)
Phone: (202) 225-5015 / Fax: (202) 226-0828

Congressman Joe Wilson (R-SC)
Phone: (202) 225-2452 / Fax: (202) 225-2455

Congressman John Boozman (R-AR)
Phone: (202) 225-4301 / Fax: (202) 225-5713

Congressman Gresham Barrett (R-SC)
Phone: (202) 225-5301 / Fax: (202) 225-3216

Congressman Connie Mack (R-FL)
Phone: (202) 225-2536 / Fax: (202) 226-0439

Congressman Jeff Fortenberry (R-NE)
Phone: (202) 225-4806 / Fax: (202) 225-5686

Congressman Michael T. McCaul (R-TX)
Phone: (202) 225-2401 / Fax: (202) 225-5955

Congressman Ted Poe (R-TX)
Phone: (202) 225-6565 / Fax: (202) 225-5547

Minority Members (Democrats) 

Congressman Tom Lantos (D-CA) [Ranking Minority Member]
Phone: (202) 225-3531 / Fax: (202) 226-4183

Congressman Howard L. Berman (D-CA)
Phone: (202) 225-4695 / Fax: (202) 225-3196
 
Congressman Gary L. Ackerman (D-NY)
Phone: (202) 225-2601 / Fax: (202) 225-1589
 
Congressman Eni F. H. Faleomavaega (D-AS)
Phone: (202) 225-8577 / Fax: 202-225-8757

Congressman Donald M. Payne (D-NJ)
Phone: (202) 225-3436 / Fax: (202) 225-4160

Congressman Robert Menendez (D-NJ)
Phone: 202-225-7919 / Fax: (202) 226-0792

Congressman Sherrod Brown (D-OH)
Phone: (202) 225-3401 / Fax: (202) 225-2266

Congressman Brad Sherman (D-CA)
Phone: (202) 225-5911 / Fax: (202) 225-5879

Congressman Robert Wexler (D-FL)
Phone: (202) 225-3001 / Fax: (202) 225-5974

Congressman Eliot L. Engel (D-NY)
Phone: (202) 225-2464 / Fax: (202) 225-5513
 
Congressman William D. Delahunt (D-MA)
Phone: (202) 225-3111 / Fax: (202) 225-5658

Congressman Gregory W. Meeks (D-NY)
Phone: (202) 225-3461 / Fax: (202) 226-4169

Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-CA)
Phone: (202) 225-2661 Fax: (202) 225-9817

Congressman Joseph Crowley (D-NY)
Phone: (202) 225-3965 / Fax: (202) 225-1909

Congressman Earl Blumenauer (D-OR)
Phone: (202) 225-4811 / Fax: (202) 225-8941

Congresswoman Shelley Berkley (D-NV)
Phone: (202) 225-5965 / Fax: (202) 225-3119

Congresswoman Grace Napolitano (D-CA)
Phone: (202) 225-5256 / Fax: (202) 225-0027

Congressman Adam Schiff (D-CA)
Phone: (202) 225-4176 / Fax: (202) 225-5828

Congresswoman Diane E. Watson (D-CA)
Phone: (202) 225-7084 / Fax: (202) 225-2422

Congressman Adam Smith (D-WA)
Phone: (202) 225-8901 / Fax: (202) 225-5893

Congresswoman Betty McCollum (D-MN)
Phone: (202) 225-6631 / Fax: (202) 225-1968

Congressman Ben Chandler (D-KY)
Phone: (202) 225-4706 / Fax: (202) 225-2122

Congressman Dennis Cardoza (D-CA)
Phone: (202) 225-6131 / Fax: (202) 225-0819

For more information, please visit www.umdiaspora.org or call (202) 294-3400.